WHO programme for the control of hospital infections

Abstract

The results of the WHO cooperative study show that hospital-acquired infections (HAI) should be considered as an important problem in both developed and developing countries. The Hospital Infection Prevalence Survey carried out in 14 countries representing four regions revealed the mean prevalence rate of 8.7% HAI with the highest frequency in intensive care, acute surgical and orthopedic units. The most common HAI were of surgical wounds (25.1% of all infections), followed by urinary tract infections (22.0%) and lower respiratory infection (20.5%). Predominant organisms causing the infection were Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli.